2021 Black History Month Celebration: Rise

“You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I’ll rise.”

~Maya Angelou, “Still I Rise”

This year, the Black History Month Planning Committee has chosen the theme “Rise” for our 2021 Celebration. The theme is inspired by Maya Angelou’s powerful work of literary art, “Still I Rise.” On the heels of one of the most difficult years for the United States in recent memory, we will endeavor this month to explore the ways we can all rise in the face of injustice, oppression, uncertainty, trauma and grief. We invite our entire campus community to join us in this powerful celebration of the Black diaspora as we highlight the ways we have risen in the past, are currently rising up, and look forward to rising in the future.

Our celebration will kick off this Thursday, Feb. 4, during our Black History Month Chapel at 11:30 a.m. in Pioneer Memorial Church (also available via livestream). Undergraduates who register in advance on the University Faith app and then attend the program will receive chapel credit.

Then, starting this Friday, Feb. 5, we will have our Celebration Sabbath Weekend. Our keynote speaker will be Claudia Allen. Claudia holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Andrews University and a master’s from Georgetown University. Most recently, she completed the first certificate program in Theology and Racialized Policing with Sojourners and the Howard University Divinity School. She currently serves as the online content manager for Message Magazine.

Claudia will be ministering to us during:

• Impact Vespers on Feb. 5 at 8 p.m. in the Howard Performing Arts Center, or via livestream on Facebook and YouTube.
• New Life Fellowship on Feb. 6 at 11:45 a.m. in the Howard Performing Arts Center, or via livestream.

I invite you to review the full schedule of our Black History Month events here.

I am looking forward to celebrating with all of you!